All posts tagged patent

Nintendo has filed a patent with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office that looks to enable users to play Game Boy on their smartphones or on displays in planes.

The patent is described as a “software emulator” for “emulating a handheld video game platform.” Nintendo filed the patent in June, but it was published last Thursday.

The filing appears to be opening the way for Nintendo to potentially offer its games on smartphones or other mobile devices. But analysts say the chance is slim that the firm will do so. That’s because Nintendo President Satoru Iwata has said previously the company would stick to using its intellectual property such as Super Mario Bros. on its game device only. Read More »

The multipurpose device could fold into a variety of forms. There’s no evidence that SAP plans to bring it to market, but it is a sign that the company is willing to consider completely new lines of business. Read More »

Live by the patent, die by the patent. That’s frequently the fate of intellectual-property companies, with Vringo the latest to feel the pain.

The New York-based company has more than 500 patents and patent applications covering telecom infrastructure, Internet search, and mobile technologies. Rather than sell products and services, Vringo makes money by licensing patents to other companies or taking them to court if they don’t play along. Read More »

Apple was granted a patent Tuesday for a smartwatch that could receive alerts for calls and social media messages, give GPS data, play media, sense physical data, and be controlled with gestures. Read More »

So for April Fool’s Day, Samsung wanted to show the world that it’s in on the joke too. Hence, a faux press release for the Samsung Fingers, the world’s first smartglove.

The press release lists the smart gloves’ purported features. Pull a finger and it makes a fart noise. Make that “hang loose” Hawaiian surfer hand sign and you can accept a phone call. Form the death-metal hand sign to make a phone call. The list goes on. Read More »

Apple’s $2 billion showdown with German patent-holding firm IPCom hit the courts Tuesday and arguments centered on a very small detail. The smallest amount of digital information, that is: a single bit.

IPCom accuses Apple of improperly using patented technology that gives emergency calls priority on mobile networks. The Bavarian firm bought the patent, alongside hundreds of others, in 2007 from Robert Bosch GmbH, a German automotive-parts company that was a pioneer in car phones but left the business at the dawn of hand-held devices.

German courts have decided that several smartphone makers have infringed a patent IPCom owns, said founder Bernhard Frohwitter. The trial Tuesday at a court in Mannheim, however, is the first one in which IPCom accuses a device maker—Apple—of infringing on an amended version of the patent. Read More »

In a blog post and press release, Google has confirmed it will sell its Motorola Mobility unit to Chinese PC maker Lenovo. Here are the highlights of the two statements:

The money
Google is getting $2.91 billion, but only $660 million of that is in cash up front. The rest comes in the form of $750 million worth of Lenovo shares, and $1.5 billion in a three-year IOU (or “promissory note” as they call it).

Why are they selling?
Google isn’t totally committed to the handset business. “The smartphone market is super competitive, and to thrive it helps to be all-in when it comes to making mobile devices,” said CEO Larry Page. “It’s why we believe that Motorola will be better served by Lenovo—which has a rapidly growing smartphone business and is the largest (and fastest-growing) PC manufacturer in the world.”

If you haven’t been impressed with Sony’s latest lineup of ultra-high definition TVs, here’s a peak of what it may be up to next: a television that works like a mirror offering ideal lighting and color to put on your makeup.

In a document filed to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office in July 2012 and published this month, Sony said it has invented a camera-equipped TV that can switch to a makeup mode. Using the camera and processor, the device displays the viewer’s image juxtaposed to an all-white background image. You can adjust the brightness and color temperature with a user interface.

San Jose bills itself as “the capital of Silicon Valley.” The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office appears to agree.

The patent office Tuesday said it will open an office in San Jose City Hall next year, part of a program to speed the patent application process and draw new talent. The patent office set up temporary shop in Menlo Park, Calif., about 20 miles away in April, its second satellite office away from the Washington, D.C., area. Read More »